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The Epididymis as a Target for Male Contraceptive Development

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Fertility Control

Part of the book series: Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology ((HEP,volume 198))

Abstract

The epididymis is an excellent target for the development of a male contraceptive. This is because the process of sperm maturation occurs in this organ; spermatozoa become motile and are able to recognise and fertilise an egg once they have traversed the epididymal duct. However, a number of attempts to interfere in sperm maturation and epididymal function or both have not been successful. The use of transgenic animals has proved useful in identifying a few epididymal targets but has yet to open the doors for drug development. Continuous focus on identifying additional epididymal targets and sperm-specific and epididymal-specific drugs is key to bringing a male contraceptive acting on the epididymis to the public.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cell Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    B. T. Hinton

  2. Centre of Reproductive Medicine and Andrology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany

    T. G. Cooper

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  1. B. T. Hinton
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  2. T. G. Cooper
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Correspondence to B. T. Hinton .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Women's Health Care Research, Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Berlin, 13342, Berlin, Germany

    Ursula-F. Habenicht

  2. ARC Centre of Excellence in, Biotechnology & Development, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, 2308, New South Wales, Australia

    R. John Aitken

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Hinton, B.T., Cooper, T.G. (2010). The Epididymis as a Target for Male Contraceptive Development. In: Habenicht, UF., Aitken, R. (eds) Fertility Control. Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology, vol 198. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02062-9_8

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